What role does religion or spirituality play in your life now? What does it mean to you?

The one thing I clung to after Mormonism was a belief in "something." I don't accept that existence is meaningless or a random chance. There has to be a reason that there is Something instead of Nothing. Otherwise life is just an absurdity hanging over an abyss. Truth, Beauty, and Goodness are real.

So I started a 10-year search. In my reading and exploring I felt that the fundamental question that a religion had to answer was the Problem of Suffering. Why is there evil and suffering in the world? I found only 2 satisfactory answers, in Buddhism (transcend suffering) or in Christianity (embrace suffering). And of those 2, I found the Christian answer to be more compelling.

I also extensively studied Biblical scholarship--the real stuff, not pop theology or pop criticism. I learned to understand that the Bible is an anthology of writings, in various genres, and that it is not to be idolized. I also learned to think about it in new ways. And to see where and how it was supported by history.

This led me to the crisis point: did I accept the resurrection of Jesus as a real event? This was a leap of faith, of course, but God's grace led me to belief. And eventually, to join the Body of Christ as configured in the Catholic Church.

That is a very short summary of years of thinking, praying and struggling.

frank